


Coming Back Together

by CelestialSpace



Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Alternate Universe - Soulmates, Angst and Hurt/Comfort, Cutting, Galaxy Garrison, I Made Myself Cry, I'm Sorry, Inspired by Art, Keith (Voltron) Needs a Hug, M/M, Pining Shiro (Voltron), Post-Kerberos Mission, Pre-Kerberos Mission, Pre-Relationship, Scars, Self-Harm, Size Difference, Soulmate-Identifying Marks, Soulmates
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-11-12
Updated: 2017-11-12
Packaged: 2019-02-01 05:05:01
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,834
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12697932
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/CelestialSpace/pseuds/CelestialSpace
Summary: Shiro was born with constellations. They start at his neck and cover his chest, back, and shoulders. Most people who are born with soulmarks have small ones, usually around the wrist, but Shiro’s is large and though the constellations themselves don’t cover up a lot of space the mark as a whole covers a large section of his skin.The thought of his parent's relationship leaves a sour taste in Shiro's mouth and leaves him not wanting to find his soulmate. Shiro goes on to the Garrison where he meets a boy with long hair and purple eyes and he's immediately drawn in. A fast friendship forms and they grow closer.Did Shiro accidentally find his soulmate unknowingly? That would only be his luck wouldn't it.Time apart while Shiro leaves for Kerberos and is abducted by Galrans makes them realize how much they need each other.Coming back together has never been so bittersweet.





	Coming Back Together

**Author's Note:**

> This is a warning for depictions of cutting I've put little ~~ at the beginning of the scene and at the end so you can skip that part if need be! This was based off this fanart I saw which I'll leave here: https://sir-scandalous.tumblr.com/post/167137273155 so go and give the artist some love!

Shiro was born with constellations. They start at his neck and cover his chest, back, and shoulders. Most people who are born with soulmarks have small ones, usually around the wrist, but Shiro’s is large and though the constellations themselves don’t cover up a lot of space the mark as a whole covers a large section of his skin.

A person’s soulmark appears on their sixteenth birthday. It usually happens while the person is sleeping, that’s how it happened for Shiro. He woke up the morning of his sixteenth birthday and immediately looked at both of his wrists for his soulmark. His stomach dropped when he found both wrists bare. It wasn’t until later that he notices something different on his neck as he passes by his bedroom mirror. 

He tries to rub the strange mark off and when it doesn’t come off he pulls the collar of his shirt down to get a better look at it. With a gasp he pulls his shirt over his head and takes in the entirety of his soulmark. As he stares at his soulmark the lightness in his chest sours and and bile rises in the back of his throat. 

Unbidden, thoughts of his parents rises to the front of his mind. His mother with a soulmark upon her wrist being tied down too young by a man with a matching mark. His parents marriage wasn’t a happy marriage. His father came from a long line of military men and he was always too harsh on his mother. There had been numerous occasions where Shiro had come between his father and his mother and received blows that were meant for her. 

He didn’t want to end up like his father, he couldn’t. Shiro can’t bear the thought of his soulmate cowering from him the way his mother cowered from his father. Having a soulmate is about love and complete trust not controlling the other person. Shiro, always so much like his father, knows his broad and muscular stature can be intimidating and the last thing he ever wants is for his soulmate to be afraid of him. 

His parents relationship hangs over his head like a black cloud. 

He meets a younger man at the Garrison and somehow they instantly click. Shiro as a cadet officer was made to give a new group of cadets a tour of the Garrison. A lean boy with almost too-long hair catches Shiro’s eye right off the bat. The boy seems isolated from the rest of the group, his bristly personality rubbing the other cadets the wrong way and his sharp tongue pushes people away. 

Shiro sees past all of that to the nervous way the boy’s hands tremble and the anxiety in his eyes. His attitude is obviously some sort of a defence mechanism and it only piques Shiro’s interest. He wants to get to know him better. 

The moment Shiro gets the opportunity he personally introduces himself to the younger man. 

“Hi, my name is Takashi Shirogane, but you can call me Shiro.” Shiro grins and holds out a hand as the boy looks back at him wearily. 

“Yeah.. you already said that earlier.” Purple eyes dart down to look at Shiro’s hand and then back up to his face but he makes no move to return the handshake. 

“This is the part where you tell me your name.” Shiro chuckles easily, his smile never dimming. 

“Keith Kogane.” His hand hesitantly meets Shiro’s between them and is quickly enveloped by Shiro’s much larger hand. 

Their friendship only grows from there. Shiro grows very close with Keith, in no time at all considering him to be one of his best friends. Conversation flows easily between them with Keith eventually coming out of his shell and being himself when around Shiro. 

Shiro learns that Keith also doesn’t romanticize soulmates, they seem to be the only two at the Garrison who don’t. Keith had an abusive father who hit his mother regularly; he hated Keith’s mother because he knew he could never have anyone else. Keith was afraid of ending up like his mother, once he lets a person in he can’t seem to tell them no and they influence him completely. 

Ah, that makes sense, Shiro thinks. He gets the prickly attitude and the harsh words now. He’s determined to protect Keith from that point on; whoever Keith’s soulmate is will have to go through Shiro first. 

Eventually it’s time for the Garrison’s mandatory physicals. The whole school goes at the same time and their health is checked and their soulmark is registered in the Garrison’s system. Cadets are lined up to different stations where their physical is administered. Because of the strange way the Garrison does things, Shiro and Keith end up in the same line. The Garrison lines cadets up by a score range which puts Shiro and Keith up in the first line with only a handful of other cadets. 

Shiro and Keith step up to the two stations at the same time and have to remove their shirts for the physical. It’s only a short amount of time before they’re both able to step away at almost the same time. They don’t notice until they’re both walking away with shirts in hand that they both freeze. They both glance down to see the constellations adorning both of their chests. 

The whispers start immediately, the soft murmur of the large room growing to a loud crescendo. Anxiety fills Keith’s eyes and his breath quickens at the same time Shiro’s does. He flinches at the growing volume of whispers surrounding them like a tornado. Shiro steps close and lifts Keith’s hand which holds his shirt up from where it was limply hanging by his side. 

“Here, put your shirt on, let’s get out of here.” Keith nods as his gaze turns distant, quickly moving to pull his Garrison-issued white shirt over his head. Shiro quickly does the same and snags Keith by his elbow. He shepherds Keith out of the large room and away to Shiro’s personal dorm. 

During the short trek to his room, they notice that when one moves so does the other, when one breathes in the other exhales, they mirror each other in every way, how did they not notice before? 

They don’t talk about what happened. Keith is too anxious over his past and Shiro is to self-sacrificial to push so they go round and round in circles for months as they continue to grow closer. There’s a tension there that wasn’t there before but they choose to ignore it, ignore it the way the ignore every whisper that follows them down the Garrison halls. 

Then Kerberos happens. 

Keith is so broken he can’t believe he missed his chance, not that he missed his chance to be happy, he missed his chance to make Shiro happy. He wanted to give Shiro something that he’ll never be able to get from someone else, to give Shiro a love that he’s never had before. Keith is just lost in memories and strange dreams. 

Shiro in captivity gets questioned about his markings but no matter what they do to him he doesn’t utter a word. They try to remove the marks from his body but no matter what they do, if they burn them off, cut them off, the marks always seem to rise to the surface and shine against his skin. 

During the nights in his cell when it’s so cold he’s shivering and his teeth are chattering he thinks of Keith and it fills him with a warmth he never knew before, he realizes how much he needs Keith, how he needs to get back to him. 

Shiro thinks of when Keith told him about his childhood and how Keith deserves to be loved, Keith deserves everything, and he wants to be the one to give that to Keith. Shiro is suddenly so afraid of what Keith is doing back on earth without him. 

Shiro figures that the Garrison pronounced him dead and he’s so afraid for the younger man. Keith never did well by himself. He’s alive dammit and he’s gonna do whatever it takes to get back to Keith. 

Shiro fights day in and day out in the arena, blood covering his hands and scars littering his body, his marks still shining through. When a Galran helps him escape he doesn’t question it, he does what he can to get out and he succeeds. 

Autopilot had been set up for him so he leans back into the chair and isn’t immediately scared for his life for once. As his eyes flutter closed with the weight of sleep he softly whispers, “I’m coming home Keith, please wait for me.” 

When he finally wakes up in a strange bed he remembers flashes of Iverson and straps and then Keith- Keith? Where is Keith? He sits up to find Keith sitting on a chair by the bed, his head hanging as he doses. 

He sees a sliver of a constellation peaking out of his shirt collar and reaches forward to card his fingers through Keith’s much longer hair, longer than he ever remembers it. Keith startles awake at the touch and they just stare at each other for a moment, neither able to move. They can see the desperation in each other’s eyes and they surge forward. 

Keith launches himself onto the bed and then he’s wrapped in Shiro’s arms. Keith’s face is pressed tight against Shiro’s neck and Shiro ducks his head to rest his forehead against Keith’s shoulder, even though it’s uncomfortable on his neck, he needs the contact. They just need to feel each other close again. 

Drops of salty tears rain down from Shiro’s eyes as Keith stutters out broken words. 

“I knew you c-couldn’t be dead.. The-the marks.. They were always there, th-they never left me.” Shiro squeezes his smaller frame tighter against him. 

“They’re what kept me going. You kept me going, I needed to come back to you, to YOU Keith.” Shiro pulls back slightly so he can look into Keith’s eyes. Keith’s eyes are ringed with red as drops of glittering starlight pour from them. 

His deep purple eyes are filled with such a sadness that Shiro hoped he’d never see, that he hoped he’d never be the cause of. 

“I’m back Keith.” 

“It’s good to have you back.” 

Shiro pulls him close again and they stay that way for several moments. Feeling the heat of the other body against them, each inhale dragging in lungfuls of the other’s scent. 

“I want to see them.” Keith says suddenly. He pulls back and slides his arms out of his jacket and then rips his shirt over his head and tosses it away from him. Shiro’s eyes immediately land on the first of the constellations which starts on Keith’s neck- Draco. 

Shiro’s eyes rove over each and every one before Keith is ducking down to make Shiro catch his eyes. 

“Please.” the word is but a whisper but it shakes Shiro to his core. 

“A-a lot happened to me out there.. A lot of bad things.. I’m not the same person I was before I left.” Shiro looks down and away from Keith’s eyes as Keith’s eyebrows furrow. His hand grabs Shiro by the chin and tilts it up to make him look into his eyes again. 

“You’re still you Shiro, no matter what happened to you out there in the stars, you’re still my Shiro.” with a heavy exhale Shiro pulls the top layer of his prisoner uniform over his head and reaches back to find the place where the bodysuit connects around his neck. He presses the hidden sensor that makes it automatically release at the seam all the way down to his lower back. 

Before he can reach up to grab either side, Keith’s hands are already there and he looks at Shiro for permission. Shiro nods in approval and Keith peels the garment down over his shoulders. He pulls until Shiro’s arms are freed and it’s turned down and is pooling around Shiro’s trim waist. 

Shiro can see the heartbreak in Keith’s eyes as they flick from scar to scar. Tears are collecting in his eyes again as they raise back to Shiro’s. Keith opens his mouth several times only to close it again. Finally, Keith rocks up onto his knees and envelops Shiro in a hug. His arms are hooked around Shiro’s shoulders and his face is buried in the shorter hair around the base of Shiro’s skull as he breathes raggedly. 

Instantly Shiro’s arms return the embrace as they seem to hold onto each other for dear life. 

“I’m okay Keith, now that I’m with you.” the words seem to break the dam within Keith and the younger man begins sobbing openly. He holds on for just a minute but then pulls back. 

“I have some scars of my own.” Shiro is concerned and confused by Keith’s words. What could have happened while he was gone? Keith turns over his arms to reveal long, jagged slices across both forearms. “It was so hard while you were gone…” 

Keith points at one that’s much deeper than the rest and bisects all the others; the scar starts at his wrist and ends at the inside of his elbow. “This one almost killed me.” Shiro reaches out and gingerly traces a finger up the thick line. “This one got me kicked out of the Garrison. I was a risk apparently, a risk they couldn’t take, no matter how good I was. It would ruin their reputation.” Keith snarls at the word and Shiro catches his jaw to make him look back up at him. 

Shiro doesn’t say anything but he takes Keith’s arm by the wrist and raises it close to his face. He drags his lips from the bottom of the scar to the top and the air seems to catch in Keith’s lungs. 

“It seems like we’re both broken.” Shiro says instead and leans forward to press their foreheads together. 

“Yeah, I guess we are.” the quiver in Keith’s voice is audible as he speaks. His hand that isn’t held by Shiro’s reaches up to touch the constellation that starts on Shiro’s neck without looking- Leo. 

His fingers trail across every fine line of the constellation by memory, knowing exactly where it sits on Shiro’s skin even after all this time. When Shiro opens his eyes it’s to find that Keith is already looking back at him with that desperate expression. Shiro pulls back only slightly to bump their noses together and a watery smile tugs at Keith’s lips. 

He tilts his head to the side and moves forward an inch. Keith’s hot breath puffs against Shiro’s face and rolls across his lips just as he breathes in. he’s surrounded and filled by Keith. As Shiro exhales both his and Keith’s breath combined, Keith breathes in, each still a mirror of each other. 

Keith closes the final distance between them and their lips press together softly. The universe seems to click into place and suddenly a rush of memories from the other floods their minds. 

Shiro sees Keith his first day at the Garrison and how he stared after past-Shiro’s smaller form as he gives Keith and the other cadets a tour around the Garrison grounds. 

Then Keith is training by himself late one night and suddenly a voice is giving him pointers from behind and he whirls around in an attack stance. It’s the same man that had given them the tour, Shiro, he asked them to call him. His hair is buzzed at the sides and is longer at the top with a forelock that’s definitely against Garrison regulations hanging in his eyes. Shiro’s silver eyes seem to glow in Keith’s memory as past-Shiro holds up his hands in surrender to Keith with a soft smile on his face. 

Then they’re situated on the roof gazing at the stars. They’re pressed together from shoulder to ankle as Shiro uses his opposite hand to point out constellations to Keith. Past-Shiro was so large large to Keith back then, Keith’s head barely reaching the top of Shiro’s shoulders. Warmth from past-him flows into Keith’s body and warms him against the chilly air. 

Then they’re back at the Garrison in Shiro’s private dorm watching a scary movie. Past-Shiro has his hands on either of Keith’s shoulders and he can feel the older man peeking over one of his shoulders to watch the movie. Past-Shiro is practically pressed against Keith’s back and he’s filled with that warmth again. 

Then they’re on the full bus that’s shuttling them to town. Keith follows past-Shiro as they pass every row that’s full of chattering cadets. They make it to the back of the bus and there’s a single seat open which Matt had saved for Shiro. Shiro plops down onto the seat and Keith prepares himself to have to make the trip back through the bus to find another seat. 

Before he can even get all the way turned, a large hand is curled around his wrist and keeping him from moving any further. When he turns, past-Shiro is looking at him with a soft smile and pats his legs which are pressed together. 

“Have a seat cadet.” past-Shiro says teasingly. With a roll of his eyes he settles on past-Shiro’s lap just as the bus pulls away. Keith’s legs are shorter so he’s forced to hang his legs on the outside of either of past-Shiro’s thighs. 

Keith’s uniformed ass is pressed up against past-Shiro’s crotch and Keith is afraid to have to stand up when they reach their destination. Keith’s back is pressed completely against his chest and he’s dwarfed compared to the broadness of Shiro. As Keith inhales, Shiro exhales, and vice versa. 

Matt and past-Shiro chatter quietly but Keith doesn’t pay much attention to the stuff they’re saying, too wrapped up in the feel of the other man against him and the warmth that’s filling him. 

Then Shiro is leaving. 

Past-Shiro is hugging Keith tightly to him just before he leaves for Kerberos. Keith is sobbing into his chest and wetting Shiro’s uniform but he can’t bring himself to care. Shiro whispers a promise to come back into Keith’s ear but then he’s gone. 

And then pilot error. 

It’s everywhere, blinking and flashing in his face. Following him around everywhere he goes. Every time he closes his eyes it’s there, like it’s burned into the back of his eyelids. He can’t take it. 

~~ 

Blood dribbles from the small slice against his wrist as his dagger gleams dully in the yellow light of the communal bathroom. 

Then another and another. 

The next day the dagger is dragged against his skin again and again, the same as the day before. 

He’s drowning with no hope of air and every slice seems to let some of the pain slip out like his blood. He can’t take it, he can’t take it. Panic is clawing it’s way up his throat and he finally confronts Iverson. 

“SHIRO IS DEAD AND THAT’S FINAL.” Iverson slams his hands on the desk as the words seem to explode from him and all argument halts. Iverson immediately regrets the words but Keith is already up and out of his seat and running from the room. He ignores his name being called from behind him and just runs. He finds himself back in his room and his dagger is already in his hand. He slips the dagger into his waistband and covers it with his uniform shirt. 

The stall door closes behind him in the communal bathroom and he locks himself in the single-person shower. He hangs his uniform jacket on the hanger on the wall and neatly folds his pants and leaves them on the seat built into the wall. 

He’s dressed in only his black tanktop and underwear with his knife in hand. He takes a moment to glance at his Garrison-issued boots sitting by the stall door and his uniform which is put away where it will stay dry. He turns on the shower as cold as it will go as panic rises in his chest. 

He can feel himself gasping for air but can’t really feel anything, nothing but numb. His chest feels like it’s in tatters as Iverson’s words echo on repeat in his ears. 

It’s not enough. 

The tip of the blade is resting against his wrist before he can even think of it. He presses hard as he drags it up his forearm and blood pours in rivulets in its wake. He doesn’t stop until the dagger reaches his elbow and he lets it clatter to the wet tiles next to him. Blood mixes in with the water as it pours out of him and they puddle around him and flows out to the drain in the center of the bathroom floor. 

He thinks he hears a voice and a knock on his stall door but he can’t bring himself to care. 

He watches the blood leave his body and thinks of Shiro. He thinks of Shiro floating in space, his body hard and cold and alone. Tears mix with the falling water and he’s sobbing. 

Feeling leaves his fingers and toes as darkness creeps up on his consciousness and he realizes he’s dizzy. Keith doesn’t even panic as he realizes his life is slipping away. 

He will finally be with Shiro again. 

The stall door rattles as something hits it. It hits the door three times before the door busts open and bounces against the wall behind it, the sliding lock falling off to land on the tile. Iverson fills the space where the door used to be and then he’s shouting something over his shoulder. 

Iverson lunges forward and shuts the water off and bends down to the floor. Keith idly thinks of the water that is most likely saturating the knees of Iverson’s pants and looks up at the man as he wraps a towel around Keith’s forearm. Iverson mumbles something to Keith but he can’t understand him as tiredness makes his eyelids heavy and he allows himself to fall unconscious. 

~~ 

Shiro is yanked back to the present by a lapful of anxious Keith grabbing desperately at him. 

“I saw it. I saw what you went through.” Keith acts as if he can’t get close enough as he speaks, trying to press himself as close as he can to Shiro. Shiro circles him with his arms and holds him tightly, giving them that closeness they both crave. 

“I saw yours too.” Keith stills in his arms as his body seems to shiver with the effort of remaining still. 

“I’m so sorry I left you Keith.” Keith exhales and pushes closer to nuzzle into Shiro’s neck. 

“I love you Shiro.” Shiro’s heart picks up speed and the air catches in his lungs. 

“I love you too Keith.” 

**Author's Note:**

> I hope you liked!! Please leave some Kudos or a comment if you want!! Or visit me on my Tumblr at captaincelestialspace! My amazing Beta uhavefaith helped me with this so give her some love too!


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